Supply Chain Planning at Momentum 2024
On this bonus episode of the podcast we are talking Supply Chain Planning with Ryan Gifford from Manhattan Associates. This conversation was originally broadcast live at Momentum 2024 where one of the biggest announcements of the conference was how Manhattan is tearing down the silos of supply chain planning and helping organizations to respond more rapidly, efficiently and effectively to the “blue dot” consumer.
Who is the Blue Dot Consumer?
As we look at the constantly evolving consumer landscape, we see that the consumer wants more options, more flexibility and they often want things on demand. This has been the rise of the blue dot consumer which refers to the blue dot that we are depicted as in many maps or apps that use location positioning to determine which retail outlet is closest to us. Manhattan is recognizing the rise of this and also the complexity that this creates on the planning side. With their newly announced Supply Chain Planning platform they are taking a different approach to how we would traditionally plan inventory to be able to accommodate and help organizations adapt to the change agent that is the consumer.
Supply Chain Planning on the Manhattan Active Platform
What Manhattan has announced is their pursuit to breakdown the silos that we often find within our supply chain. These silos mean that one part of the supply chain is doing what their tasked to do but are not necessarily considering the impacts that might have from an efficiency or cost perspective downstream. Where this often comes into play is when disruptions or reactions from a planning perspective hit the operations side of the supply chain. For example, inventory may be rushed to try and get to the distribution center which can result in a surge of inbound volume and then creates an additional need for overtime or added labor. While it might appear that the forecast is getting met and everything is aligned from an inventory perspective, it doesn’t always mean that it is as cost effective on the operations side. Manhattan’s solution is addressing this by giving real time visibility and updates to the planning team so they can understand the downstream impacts of their planning activities and get the full financial perspective.
No More Planning Downtime
Real time visibility is critical when you are looking to accommodate the blue dot consumer because they are looking to get something as soon as possible and need to know if it can happen. With traditional planning tools there is typically only a once a day nightly run to set the plan for the day. If there is disruption in the supply chain, whether it is a delayed truck or a weather event, the corrective action for the plan won’t get updated until the next planning run and in most cases it is probably to late to salvage potential sales. Manhattan has changed that with their Supply Chain Planning tool running constantly to assess any disruptions that might happen so that the plan can change in real time and prevent any lost sales.
Key Takeaways
- Manhattan’s Supply Chain Planning is now breaking down the silos in supply chain by coordinating with multiple different parts of the supply chain to ensure the best plan for all stakeholders is put into place on a consistent basis.
- The blue dot consumer is the change agent in the supply chain and is ultimately driving higher demand, better visibility and faster delivery times for organizations.
- The Supply Chain Planning tool is constantly running allowing for disruptions to be addressed in real time and ensuring the reduction in potential lost sales.
Listen to the episode or watch the video and leave your thoughts in the comments.
